Charles Burnett McDonald, III

Charles (Charlie) Burnett McDonald, Ill (76) died peacefully on Wednesday, July 13, 2022. He was born and grew up in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, to parents, Charles Burnett McDonald, Jr. and Phyllis Fisher McDonald. Charlie graduated from Bartlesville College High School in 1964. He attended Oklahoma State University from 1964 - 1969 where he studied biology and participated in ROTC officers training. Charlie was commissioned as a second lieutenant in January 1969. After graduating from college, Charlie served in the Army for four years and was stationed in Korea. He attended graduate school at North Carolina State University at Raleigh, earning his PhD in Botany in 1979, specializing in Plant Taxonomy. Charlie taught Biology for North Carolina State University for several years before moving to Albuquerque, New Mexico to work as a biologist for the US Fish and Wildlife Service. He later became the Rare and Endangered Plant Species Botanist for the US Forest Service. Charlie retired from the Forest Service in 2012.

Charlie was an active member of the New Mexico Mountain Club for many years. His desert day hikes and back-pack trips in southern Utah were very popular and well attended. For over 20 years, Charlie coordinated the teams of volunteers who built and maintained a 50-mile portion of the Continental Divide Trail that runs between Grants to Cuba. In addition to hiking, Charlie enjoyed fine wood working, golfing, cross-country skiing, kayaking, gardening, and traveling. He met Connie Merrell on a Mountain Club hike and they were married on June 19, 2004.

Charlie was preceded in death by his parents. He is survived by his wife, Constance Merrell-McDonald; his stepchildren, Jeffrey (Kim) Kusiciel, Thomas Kusiciel, and Robyn (Andy) Blomberg; five grandchildren, Lauren, Carter and Daniel Kusiciel, Garrett, and Paige Blomberg; and three sisters, Susan (Jim) Mahan, Donna McDonald, and Mary McDonald.
A Private Memorial Gathering will be held on Saturday, July 30, 2022, please contact the family for more details.
Donations may be made to The American Cancer Society or the UCCA - Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, # Support Ukraine Humanitarian Effort, https://www.mightycause.com/story/M1wzpf